The Iola register., 1887-02-11

lie, anu tney Will soon run against Sucef1n&
opposition. For . compromise Christian
character, an easy time now, but for con-
secrated behavior, grimace and caricature.
For the body, thanks to the God Of free
America, there are now no swords or fiery
stakes, but for the souls Of thousands Of
the good, in q fgurat:ve sense, rack and
gibbet and Torquemada The symbol OF
the domestic and social and private and
public suffering Of great multitude OF
Gods dear children, pillars of smoke.
But as we look over the story Of those
who in all ages have suffered for the truth,
while we leave vengeance to the Lord. let
us band together in one solemn VOW, one
tremendous oath, after having counted the
host Of the mart yrs, that for each one Of
those glorious men and women who died
for the truth. an immortal soul shall live,
live with God and live forever.
But, as already hin ted in the first SEN
tence of this sermon, nothing can be more
beautiful than The figures of smoke on q
clear sky. You can see what you will in
the contour of this volatile vapor, now
enchanted castles, now troops of horse
men, now hammered procession, now
winged couriers, now black angel Of
wrath under spear of the sunshine
turned to an angel Of light, and now from
horizon to horizon the air is picture gall
lery filled with masterpieces Of which
God is the artist, morning Clouds of smoke
horn in the sunrise, and evening clouds Of
smoke laid in the FURNISHED SepuicherS OF
the sunset.
The beauty of the transfigured smoke is
q divine symbol of the beauty Of the church.
The fairest of all the fair is she. Do not
call those prosecutors of whom l spoke the
church. They are the parasites of the
church, not the church itself. Her mission
is to cover the earth with supernatural
gladness; to op n all the prison doors; to
balsam all the wounds; TO moss all the
graves; to burn up the night in the fire.
place of a great morning; to change iron
handouts into diamond wristlets; to turn
the whole race around, and, whereas it
faced death, commanding it: fright about
face for Heaven" According TO the num-
ber of spires of the churches in all our
ci les, towns and neighborhoods are the
good homes, the wealthy osperitics and
the pure morals and the happy souls.
Meet me a: any depot the world over,
and with my eyes closed take NE by the
hand, and lead me SO that my feet will not
stumble, AID without my once looking
down, or looking to the level, take me to
some high roof or tower, and let me see
the tops of the churches, and 1 will tell
you the proportion of suicides, of arsons,
of MURDERS of thefts. According as the
churches are numerous are the crimes
few: according as the churches are few
the crimes are numerous.
The most beautiful organization the
world crer saw or ever Will see is the
much-maligued church, the friend of all
fba pf oil .fniv ho M
and clear as the sum- Beautiful in her
Author beautiful in her mission; the
heroine of the centuries: the bride of
Christi the queen of the nations. There
are hundreds of kindly institutions, some
caring for iuebriates; some for the Grip
pied: scme for the imbecile: some for the
misled; some for the blind; but the church
is the mother of all these kindly institu-
tons. There are asylums-American or En-
glish, or Scotch, or IRISH or French, or
German, or ltalian-but the church spreads
her mantle over all these, and will yet
spread it over all nations. Her gates are
beautiful; her songs are beautiful; her
prayers are beautiful: her convocations
are beautiful; her work is baoutiful. All
Kings and warriors will vet bow down at
her altars; all chains of serfdom be shat
tered against her doorstep: all nations Will
yet fellow her leading. How ariabie are
Thy tabernacles, How sacred Thy affairs!
How glorious Thy auiitoriuES. So grace
full. SO aspiring, so grand and rolling on
and rolling on. we cry out n regard to her:
''Who is this that cometh out of the wilder
less like pillars OF smoker
AIen may desecrate l. If Cromwell did
when he stabbed his cavalry horses in St.
Paurs cathedral; or break off the image
Of Christ. as did the iconoclasts in York
minister; or hurl against it august literary
antipathies, as did Gi5bon; or plot its over.
throw, as do some il ever. community
whose pride and hate and debauchery are
reprcved by the ten commandments which
| IL thrnders. and the sermon on tine mount
whicii it breathes. But 1t will stand as
/ long as the earth stands, the same
| unique and wonder-worzing and be-
attic and miraculous thing for which
! Gcd Gecreed il.
| Yop.lying and hypocritical world. shut
up those ISLANDERS about tine church OF
Christ, an institution which. tar from be-
ing what it ought to be, ana never pre-
tending 10 be perfect is five hundred
times better than any other institution
that the world ever saw or dreamed of.
The highest honor have ever had, and
ti3t L SI<-li CNCI ACSCiNC. tailLi
the highest honor l eyer want is to have
my name on her records as a member. AT
| her alta-s repented. At her sacraments
/ believed. In her service let me die.
From icr doors let me be buried. o,
church Of God! Thou home of the righteous
Thou harbor from tempest! Thou refuge
! for the E-eary! Thou lighthouse af many
nations! Thou type Of Heaven! ] could
kiss thy Eery dust with ecstasy G affec-
ton.
For a,er my tears shaN fall.
For her my prayers ascend.
To her my tolls and cares be girer
Til tolls and cares shall end
"Perfumed smoke" says Solomon. in
the words following my text. Not like the
fumes covrhed up from the throat Of a
steam pipe, or poisoned With the gases of
chemical factories, or floating in black
wrath from the conflagrations of home
steads, or sulphurous froE blazing batter
les; but sweet as burning grove of CHINA
mon, or jungle of sassafras. or the odHs OF
temple censer. ''Who is this that cometh
out OF the wilderness like pillars of smoke,
-perfumed with myrrh and frankinceuse! !'
Hear it, mea and women everywhere, that
the advance Of the gen1ine church Of
Christ means peace for all nations.
Victor Hugo, in his book entitled Nine
T Three says: - Nothing calmer than
smoke, but nothing more startling. Tnehe
ars peaceful smokes, and there are evu
osss The thi6suess and color of line
of 1moke make the whole difference be-
tween war and peace, between fraternity
and hatred. The whole happiTess of man
or his complete misery is sometimes ex-
pressed in this thin vapor which the wind
scat:ers at will.'' The great irenchman
was eight; but 90 further and say that
as the Kingdom Of God advances like pill
lars q: smoke, the Black volumes bclching
from h, tteries OF war and pouring out from
port-hGiss of ships will vanish from the
sky.